Geron Corporation announced the pricing of an underwritten public offering of 7.25 million shares of its common stock. The offering is expected to close on February 19, 2009.
UBS Investment Bank is acting as sole book-running manager for the offering. Lazard Capital Markets LLC is acting as co-manager for this offering. Geron intends to use the net proceeds from the offering for research and development, clinical trials and general corporate purposes.
A registration statement relating to the shares was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and declared effective on August 18, 2006. This offering is being made pursuant to a prospectus supplement to the registration statement.
Geron is developing first-in-class biopharmaceuticals for the treatment of cancer and chronic degenerative diseases, including spinal cord injury, heart failure and diabetes. The company is advancing an anti-cancer drug and a cancer vaccine that target the enzyme telomerase through multiple clinical trials. Geron is also the world leader in the development of human embryonic stem cell (hESC)-based therapeutics.